Happy Birthday Running Man! July 10th marked the third anniversary of the first airing of Running Man. My how time flies! Here is hoping Running Man continues their success for many years to come (at least twenty years. Is that too much to ask?).

Ratings Episode 153

1. MBC Dad! Where Are We Going? 19.2

2. MBC Real Man 17.2

3. SBS Running Man 14.5

Disgruntled note-Stupid adorable kids and hardworking army guys…(sarcasm should be noted)

Next Week on Running Man…

The race to the Asian Dream Cup completes as Patrice Evra makes a guest appearance. The cast plus guests Sulli and Park Ji Sung continue the soccer madness as they decide which cast members will play in the charity soccer tournament. Check out the preview below (which includes clips from ep 153 as well):

On to the headlines!

Nice to Meet You Haroro Junior!

The world just got a whole lot more entertaining-at least potentially entertaining, as Haha and Byul’s son was welcomed into the world. At 8:15 A.M. (KST or UTC+09:00) on July 9th Byul gave birth to the couple’s first bundle of joy. Haha could not contain his emotions and excitement at the birth and quickly took to twitter to ramble on about his joy:

“2013.7.9 8:15 am. God’s Dream.. Right now..Dream is laughing while looking at me~^^ I became a father!! My good son, Dream, who was born a week prior to his expected due date! This Tuesday was made possible by God’s blessing~ I also had no schedule today due to cancellation! I am really thankful to God who has such amazing sense…Glory to God the father~ I love you!! And more than anything else.. My wife Go Eun.. The tiny baby is crying so much.. You don’t know how much I was brought to tears by her courage.. Go Eun ah.. Thank you.. I Love you..A new addition to our small ‘byul’ [star] family hehehe Let’s live happily~ I love you so so much.. And to all those in the world who are mothers.. I respect and love you! fighting to every married man! Single men~~Follow my lead~~hehe Ah….. I am so happy!! Thank you!! Live well~~^^…Also~ Thank you so much to the midwife and doctor Lee Hye Sun as well as everyone else who helped create a comfortable atmosphere and encouraged us in a friendly manner! Thank you! Also, Dream!! You! Just grow up to be a kind person! I love you!!! I love you~~~~^^…And last but not least.. I’ve given so much pain to my own mother up until now… I’m sorry.. I love you..Mother..Mom… I love you.. I’m really thankful.. I love you…”

It seems like somebody did not realize the pain of childbirth until he saw his wife go through it. Not that his observations and subsequent feelings are a bad thing, but it just stood out to me. But how romantic that he cried at his wife’s pain! Seriously, these two!

On July 10th Haha made an appearance on This is Sweet Sorrow with ‘Afternoon Discovery where he remarked:

“I was so sorry and worried about Byul when she was going through labor. I also respected how courageous she was. My emotions were all in a jumble…. When I held the baby, it was strange and miraculous. When Byul was in pain, I cried, but when I held my son, I didn’t… I want to name him the same thing as his nickname, ‘Dream,’ but my dad wants a manly name.”

Dream has been the name the couple referred to the baby as prior to birth, in fact they had couple necklaces made days before his arrival that spelled out their roles as Dream’s Mom and Dad. Awwww! Whatever name they choose I am certain that this is going to be one funny kid. Congrats Haha and Byul!

Yoo Jae Suk has Perfect Body Proportions

The golden ratio occurs if two quantities ratio is the same as their sum to their maximum. The golden ratio has been used by artists and architects for hundreds of years as it is viewed as aesthetically pleasing. The ratio can be expressed as:

Or apparently as:

That’s right Yoo Jae Suk has been found to have the golden ratio. In terms of physique the ratio applies if your head is 1/8 of your body. Which is the case for Running Man’s grasshopper. Congrats for fulfilling a centuries old formula Yoo Jae Suk- I knew that is why I love you so much!

2NE1 to Appear on Running Man

YG recently lifted their ban on variety shows (yay!) which has made it possible for 2NE1 to appear on episode 155 of Running Man. In July 2012 the women of 2NE1 were in talks to appear in an episode however the deal fell through. I have not found BTS pics so far but I am excited to see how this episode turns out.

Running Man PD Jo’s Interview for Running Man’s 3rd Anniversary

Running Man celebrated its 3rd anniversary this week. In honor of the momentous occuastion PD Jo Hyo Jin met with No Cut News and discussed the show and its direction:

What are your thoughts on commemorating the third anniversary?

Neither Yoo Jae Suk nor I could’ve imagined that we would last this long. (laughter) We’re very grateful. We always discuss ideas and try to attempt new things every week. Sometimes we get a good response. We’re thankful to the viewers for helping us for the past three years.

Is there a special episode planned to mark the occasion?

We’ve already shot episodes that will air past the three-year mark. However, we’re still debating whether or not to prepare a special anniversary episode. If we film a special episode, the expectations would be very high. But we do think that if we can come up with something to fit the occasion, we should film it.

What episode is the most memorable for you?

The superpower episode remains the most memorable. Everything fell together remarkably with what we had planned in advance, and we began to understand that a story could be told within the games themselves. Prior to that, our games were very simple. The members could make their own stories as well. The foreign specials were also very memorable, especially the ones with Park Ji Sung. He was someone who we wanted on our show for a long time, and the members all liked him. We all became very close after that, so it was easy getting him to guest again. The second time, there were many parts that were even better than the first, so we’re very satisfied.

What guests were the most memorable?

Park Ji Sung was the most surprising. I had no idea he could talk that well. When I first went to England to meet him, he had an amazing sense of variety. Even Yoo Jae Suk told him he should do variety more. Choi Min Soo is also someone I’m thankful towards. He was very good at livening up his character, putting suspense into ‘Running Man’ in the process. He was very memorable. Also, I was very surprised with Jung Woo Sung — I was expecting a very manly, charismatic character, but as we filmed together, he had many fun moments. Apart from them, Son Ye Jin, Gong Hyo Jin, Han Hyo Joo, Suzy, and Sulli were all highlights. This is true for most guests, but viewers tend to like guests who participate intensely in the filming. I was very moved by that.

When do you think ‘Running Man’ began gaining traction?

I think the turning point came with our first foreign filming. Around that same time, we were planning on making many changes. Before that, filming went from dawn until evening, and we thought we could do things another way. We decided to break out of the system of filming in only one particular location. The first episode with the new system was the ‘Queen Bee Race’ with Noh Sa Yeon and Goo Hara, which was our first implementation of the ‘race’ mechanic. It received a good response from the viewers, and we also used it in our Thailand excursion. There was also the positive trait that we could show off many landmarks in one episode.

Your popularity is strong abroad as well as domestically.

I’m curious about that too. (laughter) Many foreigners say our show is fun and the fact that we have new ideas every week is something new. There’s also a lot of intensity and humor, so maybe that’s why it’s getting so much love. Honestly, it’s hard to film overseas nowadays. (laughter) So many people show up, it’s sometimes hard to carry on filming.

‘Running Man’ is gaining attention internationally — does it put pressure on you?

The pressure was there from the very first episode. (laughter) After we got popular, the producers share a lot of discussion about ideas. Since we have a large amount of young viewers, the ideas hold a lot of merit. So there’s a lot of pressure and stress about that. (laughter) Since we have to produce within the limited space of games, we only think about how we can further improve and grow ideas.

What’s the secret behind the powerful guest casting?

At first, it was hard finding guests to come on the program, since there was talk that it was hard work and nothing else. In a game format, finding characters was the toughest thing. In everyday situations, it’s easy to establish personalities, but harder to do while playing games. The cast needed to play games and draw from their characters at the same time, so we didn’t want to impose unnatural characters on them. After a while, the characters began to form, and along with that came an atmosphere that guests felt comfortable participating in. After that, I think guests think very comfortably of ‘Running Man’. In fact, we tell them to just show up and have a good time. Since a lot of great guests have been on our program, many people come to us first with interest in guesting. I think this creates a positive feedback loop.

Among SBS programs, ‘Running Man’ has lasted for a long time.

It’s all thanks to the members. Yoo Jae Suk is wonderful at creating the perfect balance. Kim Jong Kook has a strong image on air, but takes care of everyone behind the scenes. So all of the members became friendly with each other. The scriptwriters and producers are also working hard to plan new items. We all share a drive to try something new, and I think that gets reflected with the viewers.

Do you have any plans to implement changes in the program?

Rather than guests, we’re getting the idea that we might need to try different kinds of games. We need to develop new weapons, but it’s not as easy as we thought it would be. Since it’s been three years, we hope to bring a new kind of ‘Running Man’ soon.

What sort of program do you want to be remembered as?

A really, really fun program. I don’t hold any other thoughts. Although there are a lot of programs with values and deep thoughts, I want to make ‘Running Man’ into just a plain, fun show that allows viewers to drop everything in their real lives and laugh.

Parting Thoughts:

The first fifteen minutes of the first episode in honor of Running Man’s anniversary! RM fighting!